Ring in the Old
Ring in the Old is the eleventh episode of the first season of Shining Time Station. Plot Matt and Tanya see Schemer wheeling a handcart into the arcade and ask him what he's doing. He says that he is getting rid of the large soccer game machine, calling it a piece of junk. The kids ask him what's wrong with it and Schemer replies that no one wants to spend their money playing an old machine. Schemer strains his shoulder as he tries to lift the machine with the cart. He gives up trying and vows to the machine that he'll be back for it. He leaves the station rubbing his sore shoulder. At the information booth, Harry is speaking to someone on the telephone and telling them that they can stay with him as long as they like. Harry is in a good mood when the call ends, and tells the kids that his good friend Nathaniel Kaz, known as Nat, is coming to Shining Time for a visit. He then tells Matt and Tanya that he's off to pick up a present for Nat at the general store. The kids wander over to the ticket counter and ask Stacy if she knows Nat, but she confesses that she doesn't. Matt wonders if Nat is old like Harry. Stacy, bemused by his statement, says that would depend on what they consider "old" to be. Tanya states that 12 is old which makes Stacy ask what age that would make her. Tanya guesses 60, then 70, leaving Stacy both surprised and amused by her guesses. Tanya then asks her what her age is, and Stacy mimics her grandmother as she replies "you're as old as your tongue and a little older than your teeth." The children giggle and Stacy adds that you are only as old as you feel. Matt wonders what that means and Stacy further explains that you may look old on the outside, but still feel young on the inside. A caller rings to ask Stacy if they can send a package on the next train to Turley, and as she takes the call, she sends the kids to keep a lookout for Harry's friend. Later, the children are in the Lost and Found where Tanya finds and tries on an old hat and shawl. Matt finds what he thinks is some kind of picture machine. It's actually an antique stereoscope that allows a viewer to see a pair of photos in 3D. Matt takes a look and sees a cartoon still of an elderly couple sitting in front of a fireplace. Tanya asks him what he's seeing, and Matt replies a couple of old people just as Mr. Conductor appears, makes a gesture and disappears. The picture Matt sees suddenly becomes an animated music video playing "In the Good Old Summer Time." Matt is stunned by what he just saw when Mr. Conductor reappears to ask if he enjoyed the show. He then asks Tanya about what she's wearing. When Tanya replies that it's just junk, Mr. Conductor reminds her that some of these old things are beautiful, have charm, style, personality and history. Tanya is amazed as she thinks about it, and Mr. Conductor adds that old things can be very special and tells the story about how the railway thought Toby the Tram Engine was too old and no longer useful. Toby is a tram engine, who lives and works on his own little railway. He has cowcatchers and sideplates to help prevent accidents, causing him to look quite unlike a steam engine. He has his own coach called Henrietta, who always rides along with him. Sadly, Toby and Henrietta have both seen better days and the amount of passengers and cars they carry have been reducing due to the roads. The passengers would rather travel by bus, while companies send their cargo by truck. As a result, Toby's cars and Henrietta are usually empty. One day a stout gentleman who was Sir Topham Hatt, his wife, and two grandchildren visit the railway while on holiday. The two children note that Toby looks unusual for an engine and the gentleman tells them that he is a tram engine. After accidentally offending Toby by thinking he was electric, the two children want a ride. Sir Topham Hatt agrees and the whole family take a ride in Henrietta, who could not be happier to have passengers again. Afterwards, Sir Topham Hatt speaks to Toby and thanks him for a lovely journey. Toby notes to himself that the gentleman knows how to speak to engines. The family returns everyday for two weeks for rides with Toby, sometimes riding with the conductor or sometimes inside empty cars. On the last day of the holiday, they ride with Toby's crew in his cab. Everyone is sorry when the family has to leave and Toby asks them to come back one day; the family promises. After bidding goodbye, Toby and Henrietta leave and the family waves until Toby is out of sight. As the months pass, Toby finds himself carrying even fewer passengers and freight. Soon the inevitable happens and Toby's controller decides to shut the line down much to Toby's grief. The next day, a lot of people come out for the chance at a last ride on Toby and fill up Henrietta to capacity. Although the passengers joke and treat the occasion like a celebration, Toby and his driver know it is anything but. That night, the passengers wish Toby a sad goodbye and he returns to his shed, falling asleep feeling lonely and unwanted. The next morning, Toby is woken by his excited crew, who has just received some very good news; an important letter from the stout gentleman. Afterward, Tanya asks what was in the letter that Toby's Driver received at the end of the story. Mr. Conductor hopes that it's good news for Toby and Henrietta, and goes off to find out. The kids also wish for the same just as a train arrives. Matt finds and wears an old top hat and jacket and joins Tanya as they wait for Nat to enter the station. The kids are disappointed when no one gets off, and hope Nat is still coming to visit. Stacy comes and tells the kids that Nat will likely be on the next train. Matt wonders if Nat forgot to take the train, and Stacy offers that perhaps he's riding a bicycle to Shining Time. Tanya questions the choice of a bicycle for a man Nat's age, but Stacy impresses on her that just because a person is old does not mean that they stop doing things. She muses that the expression "older, but wiser" is true and Tanya agrees saying that is why her grandpa knows the answer to so many things. Stacy explains that older people store up all of their life experiences and that they can learn a lot from them. To elaborate on what she said, Stacy leads them to the Picture Machine where they watch a music video about what can be learned from older people. Harry returns from his errand, wheeling in a cardboard box atop a pedestal into his workshop. The kids come in and ask Harry about the box. Harry says that this is Nat's present, and shares his memories of when Nat and Harry rode the footplate of their favorite engine, the Rainbow Tiger, which was retired to a railroad museum where it is being restored. Harry says that even if things are very old, they can still have plenty of life in them. Still reminiscing, he sends the kids off to play, saying he has work to do. The kids wonder what's in the box and Matt thinks it's a toy. Tanya says that old people do not play with toys and Matt counters that they might if they feel young. Mr. Conductor appears and Tanya tells him about the memories Harry shared with them of Nat. Mr. Conductor begins to sing a few bars of the song "Memories," and suggests that memories are wonderful as they let you experience a good time over and over again. He adds that things often have memories attached to them, making Matt and Tanya think that the clothes themselves have memories of the places the people who wore them went to. When Schemer is heard talking in the distance, Mr. Conductor takes that as his cue to disappear. Schemer enters his arcade and tells the kids when they are done playing to either clean the old clothes they are wearing or throw them away. Schemer then puts a “TRASH” sign on the soccer game. Matt tries to reason with him that just because a machine is old, it doesn’t mean that it needs to be thrown out. Schemer informs them that if they want to get ahead in the world, that they have to change with the times. He shows them a poster depicting a space scene with words that read “Hi-Tech Space Video Game.” Schemer claims that it represents the future, as that is what smart businessmen should invest in, never the past. As he hangs up the new poster he crows “out with the old, in with the new!” and leaves. Matt and Tanya are disappointed, but become happy again when Mr. Conductor reappears. He excitedly tells them that he can now share what happened to Toby and Henrietta, and tells them how Thomas getting in trouble with a policeman led to Toby and Henrietta being rescued. Thomas is leaving the quarry at the end of his branch line. Thomas is always careful at this point in his run and sees a new policeman on his bike. Having been friends with the previous policeman who had just retired, Thomas whistles good morning to him. Unfortunately, this policeman is not in the mood to be friendly. The policeman first complains about Thomas' whistling and then tells Thomas he is breaking the law by not wearing cowcatchers and sideplates on the road. Thomas gets angry and his driver argues that they have never had an accident before, but this just makes things worse and the policeman brands Thomas a "regular law breaker". Thomas continues sadly to the station. In his dining room, the Fat Controller is having breakfast when he is phoned about Thomas' incident with the police. Rushing to the station, the Fat Controller is told what happened and starts arguing with the policeman. The policeman won't back down however and the Fat Controller concedes that Thomas will need to be fitted with cowcatchers and sideplates. Thomas is distraught by this, saying that he will be laughed at for looking like a tram. The comment causes the Fat Controller to be reminded of Toby. Knowing that Toby is losing a lot of his work, the Fat Controller writes a letter to Toby's controller asking if he can be sent to Sodor. A few days later, Toby arrives and is greeted by the Fat Controller, who notices that Toby has brought Henrietta with him. But he is more than happy to allow her to stay as well. Toby soon proves to have a talent for handling the trucks. Although Thomas is jealous at first, he quickly becomes good friends with Toby, especially when Toby uses his bell to frighten the policeman. After the tale, Mr. Conductor vanishes just as Stacy calls out with some good news that the next train will soon be arriving at Shining Time Station. She suggests playing some music on the jukebox to help the train to speed along. The Jukebox Puppet Band then plays “The Train is a Comin.” The train finally arrives at the station and Nat makes his entrance. He and Harry make their way into the workshop, where Harry presents Nat with his gift. Nat removes the cardboard cover and is pleasantly surprised by what he describes as a block of magic clay. The kids do not see anything special about it and Nat explains that just about anything they want can be found in that block of clay. When Nat asks if they'd like to see a pony, the kids eagerly agree. Nat begins to work the clay into a pony, and makes a second sculpture of a woman's head as Harry beams with pleasure and the kids watch in awe. Meanwhile in the arcade, Schemer is killing time by repeatedly removing and re-inserting a nickel from his belt coin changer. A well-dressed man with an English accent comes into the arcade asking if the old soccer game is broken. Schemer replies that it's not, but it's a piece of junk that has outlived its time. Schemer boasts that his arcade is entering the space age and points to the new video game poster. The man is unimpressed and says that he can play the new games anywhere. He adds that he comes to Shining Time Station for the old machines as they are the fun ones. The man asks if Schemer was really going to throw the old machine away, and Schemer awkwardly replies that it was originally part of his plan. The man cries out what a shame it is, based on the machine's workmanship and how they don't make arcade games like it anymore. He then coolly says that he'll need to take his business elsewhere and begins to leave. Schemer begs him to wait, and asks the man if he wants to play the machine. The man replies that it's why he came to the arcade in the first place. Schemer tells him that he'll put the game back in service just for him, and rips up the trash sign. The kids arrive and the man asks if they'd like to play the game with him. They are having fun when Schemer asks if they need a fourth player and is allowed to join them. Stacy answers the telephone as the players shout and laugh. Stacy confirms the caller's question that the train bound for Turley stops at the station three times a day. Stacy momentarily ducks into the workshop with the phone where it's quieter and asks the caller to repeat what they said as she witnesses Nat presenting a sculpture of a man and woman dancing to Harry. Stacy returns to the noisy station interior and joyfully acknowledges to the caller that it is indeed loud. She adds that Shining Time Station may be old, but it has plenty of life in it as the episode ends. Characters * Mr. Conductor * Stacy * Harry * Schemer * Matt * Tanya * Nathaniel Kaz * Thomas (mentioned) * Toby (mentioned) * Henrietta (mentioned) Thomas stories * Toby the Tram Engine * Thomas Breaks the Rules Jukebox Band Song Segment * Train Is A-Coming Cartoons and Songs * Old But Wise Trivia * Matt dresses up as Sir Topham Hatt. * The "Rainbow Tiger" train that Harry recollects is represented by the Norfolk and Western locomotive no. 611. This footage was originally filmed for the 1983 documentary Going Home, a promotional film released by Norfolk Southern documenting #611's restoration. * Mr. Conductor sings a line from the song, "Memories", published in 1915. * Gordon Gould guest stars as the passenger in the arcade. 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